


Mischief managed

by fromthedeskoftheraven



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pranks and Practical Jokes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-08
Updated: 2016-09-08
Packaged: 2018-08-13 22:56:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7989202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fromthedeskoftheraven/pseuds/fromthedeskoftheraven
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thorin’s love gets caught helping Fili and Kili with their pranks.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mischief managed

**“I’m not getting into trouble for you.”**

You crossed your arms, facing down the pair of dwarves who stood before you with matching glints of mischief in their eyes. Oh, Fili and Kili could be a laugh, to be sure, and they’d already managed to persuade you to join them in a handful of harmless pranks, but at their latest scheme you had every intention of drawing the line.

“You won’t, that’s the beauty of it,” Kili enthused. 

“This is Dwalin we’re talking about,” you pointed out. “He will _kill_ me. Slowly.”

“Not with Thorin’s braid in your hair, he won’t,” Fili said airily, as he leaned to look over the rampart at the guards stationed at the Gate.

“It’s foolproof,” Kili promised, tugging you by the arm to survey the scene below. “Dwalin comes to oversee the changing of the guard, you tip the water over his head and run. He’ll never know who did it.”

“Except that he likely already knows who put treacle in Ori’s inkwell, and the toy snake in Dori’s wardrobe, and switched sugar for salt on Bombur’s tea tray, and–”

“We’ve never admitted to any of that,” Fili reminded you. “Nor will we.”

“He should be glad it’s only water,” Kili mused, clearly regretting a missed opportunity. “Anyone else, we’d have used porridge.”

“Just imagine the look on his face,” Fili grinned. “It’s worth any amount of risk.”

“Says the person who’ll be watching from a safe hiding place,” you said dryly.

“Don’t worry,” he said, giving your shoulder a bracing pat. “You’re practically family, we’d never let anything happen to you.”

_Practically family._ The words sparked a tiny, prideful flutter of happiness in your chest, and you silently cursed him for finding your weak spot.

“Of course we wouldn’t,” Kili chimed in with a winning smile. “If you need anything, just hoot twice like a barn owl.”

* * *

Only a little while later, you stood alone on the rampart where the brothers had left you with parting grins of encouragement, giving the occasional doubtful look to the bucket of water beside you and passing the long minutes until Dwalin was due to arrive.

Your ears pricked up at the sound of footsteps behind you, and you turned with a start to find the last person you had hoped to see at that moment advancing toward you with a warm smile.

“Thorin!” You smiled brightly, stepping deftly to the side in an effort to hide the bucket behind your skirts as you greeted him with a kiss. “I thought you were at the council all afternoon.”

If he noticed your skittishness, he did not comment, but only slipped his arms around you to steal another, more lingering kiss that made you momentarily forget the secret you were aiming to keep. 

“We are taking a short recess,” he said. “I craved the sight of my beloved’s face amidst an afternoon spent buried in parchment and ink.”

A gratified, if guilty, smile crept over your face, and you ran your fingers over one of his beaded braids. “Well, I wouldn’t wish to keep you from important business,” you offered lamely.

“I am not required for an hour yet,” he said, grazing your forehead with his lips before giving you a knowing smile. “And there is yet a quarter of an hour before Dwalin will be in position for his dousing.”

Your cheeks blanched and flamed in quick succession, and the fleeting thought of pretending innocence dissolved into a resigned sigh. “How did you know?”

Thorin’s eyes crinkled with his amused grin. “You should take into account the rather talkative ravens of Erebor when you make your plans where they roost.”

A groan escaped you, and you dropped your head to his shoulder, feeling his hand move to smooth your hair. “I promise you, **it’s not like I go looking for trouble. It just sort of finds me.** ”

“And does it wear the faces of my nephews?” Thorin spoke with the weary voice of experience, and you chuckled ruefully.

“I just want them to approve of me, Thorin,” you confessed, “to like me.”

“My sweet One,” he said soothingly, “they have always liked you. You were not there to see their merriment when I broke the news of our courtship.”

“Truly?” 

“On my honor,” he smiled. “And you must remember, it is I who must give approval to their love matches, not the other way around.”

You sighed, with relief this time, and glanced sheepishly at the bucket of water. “Truth be told, I wasn’t entirely certain about going through with it. I don’t know that I’m quite brave enough to risk Dwalin’s wrath.”

Thorin laughed, and leaned closer with a confidential tone. “His bark is worse than his bite, though he would not like me telling you so…he goes to great lengths to maintain his fearsome reputation.”

You laughed as well, and just as you stood on tiptoe to offer Thorin a more lighthearted kiss, footsteps could be heard on the ground below. Peering over the rampart, you spied Fili and Kili sauntering toward the Gate, exchanging cocksure grins and snatches of laughing conversation.

Despite the exasperated set of his jaw, a twinkle lurked in Thorin’s eyes when they met yours – the family resemblance with Kili struck you more than ever before – and you watched in amazement as he put his finger to his lips and quietly hoisted the bucket. 

“I do believe,” he murmured, a sly grin stealing over his face, “a dose of their own medicine would do them good.”


End file.
